Harry Reid International Airport

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FAA diagram of McCarran International Airport

Template:Redirect4 McCarran International Airport (IATA: LAS, ICAO: KLAS, FAA LID: LAS) is the principal commercial airport serving Las Vegas and surrounding Clark County, Nevada. The airport is located five miles (8 km) south of the central business district of Las Vegas, in the unincorporated town of Paradise. It covers an area of 2,800 acres (1,133 ha) and has four runways. McCarran is owned by Clark County and operated by the Clark County Department of Aviation (DOA). It serves as a hub for US Airways and Allegiant Air, and is the largest operation base for Southwest Airlines.

In 2005, McCarran was one of the world's busiest airports, ranking ninth for passenger traffic, with 44,280,190 passengers passing through the terminal, and fifth for aircraft movements, with 605,046 takeoffs and landings. Currently, McCarran International Airport is the sixth busiest airport in the United States in terms of traffic, and the eleventh in the world with 46,194,882 passengers passing through the airport in 2006; a 4.3% change from 2005.[1]

McCarran and the DOA are completely self-sufficient enterprises, requiring no money from the County's general fund.[2]

As of June 2007, Southwest Airlines operated more flights out of McCarran than at any other airport. Southwest also carries the most passengers in and out of McCarran. Southwest currently operates out of 21 gates, primarily in Concourse C, at McCarran. The US Airways night-flight hub operation, established in 1986 by predecessor America West Airlines, makes the carrier McCarran's second busiest airline, with the vast majority of flights still operated by America West.

McCarran Airport is somewhat unique in that it has more than 1,300 slot machines throughout the airport terminals. Reno/Tahoe International Airport also has gaming machines both airside and landside.

Maximum capacity for the airport is estimated at 53 million passengers and 625,000 aircraft movements. As McCarran is predicted to reach this capacity around 2017, Ivanpah Airport is planned as a relief airport.

History

American aviator George Crockett, a descendant of frontiersman Davy Crockett, established Alamo Airport in 1942 on the site currently occupied by McCarran International. In 1948, Clark County purchased the airfield from Crockett to establish the Clark County Public Airport, and all commercial operations moved to the site of this airport. On December 20, 1948 the airport was renamed McCarran Field for U.S. Senator Pat McCarran, a longtime Nevada politician who authored the Civil Aeronautics Act and played a major role in developing aviation nationwide.

The location for the present terminals was moved from Las Vegas Boulevard South to Paradise Road in 1963. By this time, the airport was serving 1.5 million passengers a year.

In 1978, Sen. Howard Cannon, was able to push though Congress the Airline Deregulation Act. That meant airlines no longer had to get the federal government's permission to fly to destinations, but instead dealt with the airports to establish additional routes. Just after deregulation, the number of airlines serving McCarran doubled from seven to 14.

An expansion plan called McCarran 2000 was adopted in 1978 and funded by a $300 million bond in 1982. The three-phase plan included a new central terminal; a nine-level parking facility; runway additions and expansions; additional gates; upgraded passenger assistance facilities; and a new tunnel and revamped roadways into the airport. The first phase of McCarran 2000 opened in 1985 and was completed by 1987.

Between 1986 and 1997, Terminal 2 was built where two separate terminals had been in the 1970s and 1980s; one for American Airlines and the other for Pacific Southwest Airlines.

In the 1990s all gates and check in counters were upgraded to use a common set of computer hardware. CUTE, Common Use Terminal Equipment, eliminated the need for each airline to have their own equipment and allows the airport to reassign gates and counters without having to address individual airlines' computer systems. McCarran was the first airport in the United States to implement this type of system. However the system does not allow all features to work with most airlines systems, including one new feature the picture Cockpit Access Security System system which has required most airlines to not allow pilots and officers from other airlines to access the flight deck.

In 1998 the D Gates SE and SW wings opened adding 28 gates. The D Gates project is a modification to the original McCarran 2000 plan.

On October 16, 2003, the airport installed SpeedCheck kiosks which allow customers to obtain a boarding pass without having to go to a specific airline kiosk or counter. McCarran was the first airport to provide this service for multiple airlines from a single kiosk. At the same time, 6 kiosks were activated at the Las Vegas Convention Center allowing convention attendees to get boarding passes on their way to the airport. This system was enhanced to add printing of baggage tags in 2005.

On January 4, 2005, the airport started offering wireless internet service for free. The signal is available in the boarding areas and most other public areas. The airport was the first to provide this as a free service for the entire facility[citation needed]. At the time, this was the largest (2 million square feet (180,000 m²)) free wireless internet installation in the world.[3]

In 2005, the D Gates NE wing opened adding 10 gates.

On April 4, 2007, the Consolidated Rent-a-Car facility, located 3 miles from the terminals, opened with 5,000 parking spaces on 68 acres of land. A fleet of 40 buses provides transportation from the terminals to the facility which houses 11 car rental companies.[4] Advantage, Savmore, Payless, and Enterprise will use a new access control system. This system will be based on barcodes.[5]

Terminals, airlines and destinations

Destinations with direct service from McCarran

McCarran International Airport has two public passenger terminals. Other terminals service private aircraft, US government contractors, sightseeing flights and cargo.

Terminal 1

Terminal 1 handles most flights and contains 85 gates in four concourses. People movers connect concourses C and D with the Terminal 1 check-in and baggage claim areas.

Concourse A

  • US Airways (Charlotte, Fort Lauderdale, Miami, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Salt Lake City, West Palm Beach)
    • US Airways operated by America West Airlines (Anchorage, Atlanta, Baltimore/Washington, Boston, Calgary, Chicago-O'Hare, Cleveland, Columbus, Dallas/Fort Worth, Denver, Detroit, Edmonton, Fort Lauderdale, Kahului, Los Angeles, Los Cabos, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New York-JFK, Newark, Oakland, Ontario, Orange County, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Portland (OR), Puerto Vallarta, Raleigh/Durham, Reno/Tahoe, Sacramento, Salt Lake City(Saturdays only) San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose (CA), Seattle/Tacoma, Tampa, Toronto-Pearson, Vancouver, Washington-Dulles, Washington-Reagan)
    • US Airways Express operated by Air Midwest (Cedar City, Ely, Farmington, Merced, Visalia)
    • US Airways Express operated by Mesa Airlines (Austin, Bakersfield, Burbank, Colorado Springs, Eugene, Fresno, Houston-Intercontinental, Los Angeles, Medford, Monterey, Oakland, Ontario, Palm Springs, Phoenix, Reno/Tahoe, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, San Jose (CA), San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Tucson, Yuma)

Concourse B

  • US Airways
  • Southwest Airlines (Albany, Albuquerque, Amarillo, Austin, Baltimore/Washington, Birmingham (AL), Boise, Buffalo, Burbank, Chicago-Midway, Cleveland, Columbus, Denver, El Paso, Hartford, Houston-Hobby, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Little Rock, Long Island/Islip, Los Angeles, Louisville, Lubbock, Manchester (NH), Midland/Odessa, Nashville, New Orleans, Norfolk, Oakland, Oklahoma City, Omaha, Ontario, Orange County, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland (OR), Providence, Raleigh/Durham, Reno/Tahoe, Sacramento, St. Louis, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco [begins August 26], San Jose (CA), Seattle/Tacoma, Spokane, Tampa, Tucson, Tulsa, Washington-Dulles)

Concourse C

Concourse D

Welcome to McCarran airport sign in the D gate concourse
  • AirTran Airways (Akron/Canton [begins August 15], Atlanta, Bloomington [begins August 15], Dayton [begins August 15], Flint [begins August 15], Milwaukee [begins June 10], Moline/Quad Cities [begins August 15], Rochester (NY) [begins August 15])
  • Alaska Airlines (Portland (OR), Seattle/Tacoma, Vancouver)
  • Allegiant Air (Belleville/St. Louis, Bellingham, Billings, Bismarck, Cedar Rapids, Champaign/Urbana [begins August 16], Colorado Springs, Des Moines, Duluth, Eugene, Fargo, Fort Collins/Loveland, Fort Wayne, Fresno, Gulfport/Biloxi, Grand Junction, Great Falls, Green Bay, Idaho Falls, Knoxville, Lansing, Laredo, Lincoln, McAllen (TX), Medford, Missoula, Oklahoma City, Palm Springs [seasonal], Pasco, Peoria, Rapid City, Redmond/Bend, Rochester (MN) [begins June 14], Rockford, Santa Maria (CA), Shreveport, Sioux Falls, South Bend, Springfield (IL) [begins August 17], Springfield (MO), Stockton, Topeka [ends July 30], Wichita)
  • American Airlines (Chicago-O'Hare, Dallas/Fort Worth, Los Angeles, Miami, New York-JFK [begins September 5], St. Louis)
  • Continental Airlines (Cleveland, Houston-Intercontinental, Newark)
  • Delta Air Lines (Atlanta, Boston, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky, Fort Lauderdale, Los Angeles, New York-JFK, Orlando, Salt Lake City)
  • Frontier Airlines (Denver, Memphis, San Francisco [ends July 10])
  • JetBlue Airways (Boston, Long Beach, New York-JFK, Washington-Dulles)
  • Midwest Airlines (Milwaukee)
  • Northwest Airlines (Detroit, Grand Rapids [seasonal], Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Memphis, Minneapolis/St. Paul)
  • Spirit Airlines (Atlanta, Atlantic City, Detroit, Fort Lauderdale)
  • Sun Country (Minneapolis/St. Paul)
  • United Airlines

Terminal 2

USGS-image of the airport

Also known as the Charter International Terminal, Terminal 2 contains eight gates, four of which are for international flights. All international arrivals must go through Terminal 2 so passengers can clear customs. Terminal 2 also handles most charter flights.

Charter

Besides scheduled services, McCarran is a major hub for sightseeing flights. As such, many charter airlines, usually using Terminal 2, are regular users of McCarran.

Cargo

At McCarran, there is a terminal devoted to cargo airline operations for:

In 2004, McCarran handled 201,135,520 pounds of cargo.

Other terminal operations

Future

As the airport continues through the process of upgrading and expanding there is a list of projects due to be completed before 2011:

Terminal 3

The $1.6 billion Terminal 3 will be built in one phase. Its opening in early-2011 would provide 14 additional gates, including six designated for international travelers. Once it opens, McCarran will have 117 gates.

D-gates expansion

The northwest wing expansion of the D-gates is expected to open in April of 2008. D-Gates is a satellite gate system which uses the main airport's baggage facilities.

Las Vegas Monorail Connection

A plan to extend the Las Vegas Monorail to McCarran is under consideration. The proposed extension add stops at Terminal 1 and at Terminal 3.

Other projects

  • Baggage claim — Terminal 1 — new baggage claim devices (estimated 2007)
  • Terminal 3 — a new terminal for scheduled carriers; a 'unit' terminal including bag claim, ticketing and parking facilities (estimated early 2011)
  • Roadway system improvements — concurrent with development of Terminal 3
  • Aircraft apron reconstruction and Terminal 1 rehabilitation (ongoing)

Howard W. Cannon Aviation Museum

The Howard W. Cannon Aviation Museum is located on the Esplanade, Level 2, above the baggage claim area. This small museum is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and concentrates on Las Vegas airline history. Items on display include a copy of the first emergency vehicle that was used on the airfield. Admittance is free. A small branch of the museum is located at the D gates, and some of the other concourses and check-in areas also have small displays.

Airport public art

Some of the public art displays in McCarran Airport includes:

  • Murals in McCarran International Airport D Gates (artists include Tom Holder, Mary Warner, Robert Beckmann, Harold Bradford)
  • Greg LeFevre's "Flights Paths" — in the rotunda’s terrazzo floor
  • Tony Milici's steel and glass sculpture at McCarran's D Gates
  • McCarran's D Gates feature wall tiles of international skylines by sixteen Clark County fourth graders
  • Wildlife sculptures of Clark County wildlife at the D Gates, by David Phelps

Airline lounges

US Airways operates a US Airways Club outside security, above the ticket counters in Terminal 1. Open from 5am to 12am daily.

References

  1. ^ "2006 Busiest Airports In The World".
  2. ^ "MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS" (pdf). p. 15.
  3. ^ Thayer, Gary (2005-01-04). "Las Vegas airport launches U.S.' largest free Wi-Fi network". Retrieved 2007-05-04.
  4. ^ "Car renters consolidate in building near airport". Las Vegas Review-Journal. 2007-04-04. p. 1D. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  5. ^ "McCarran Consolidated Car Rental Facility".

External links

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